What Happened to Girlfriend Today #parrot

This girl lived through a babyhood miracle - hence her original name of Miracle by her first-9-years owner - and today she lived to tell the tale again.

I was in my recliner, doing my phone job that I do every day. It was mid-afternoon, when the birds always have their siesta, so I wasn't paying any particular attention to them...just taking the calls and making the appointments as I always do.

Then as clear as if it were a horn blasting in my ear: "Go check the birds!" It was as clear and unmistakable as are these words on the screen, so much so that I got out of my chair as quickly as I could manage. As I was scanning the cages I saw Girlfriend laying on the floor of her cage, at the very back, facing away from me. She was jerking every second or so...my heart just about stopped...all of our birds are special, but Girlfriend especially holds a huge place in Pete's heart. (That's how she got her name, in fact, she's the only "girlfriend" I will let him have - lol!)

I thought she was dying. Well, she looked like she was dying! And I said as much as Pete made his way over, while I was going to the back of her cage so I could see her face. He was reaching in for her, but couldn't move her...it took me a few seconds to see that her upper beak was caught on one of the looping wires that held the grate in her cage, where the end should have been closed tightly. Through the 1/2" bars I couldn't free her, but my quick-thinking husband was already on the way to get a pair of pliers. Through the bars he opened up the wire loop and she was loose.

She was wobbly at first. I don't know how long she'd been there, but I'm sure God would have gotten my attention sooner if it had been any longer. (Oh yes, I do know my Shepherd's voice!) Pete held her for a minute. She wouldn't take a sunflower seed (her faovirte, but rare, treat), I'm sure her beak was sore. I got her a teddy graham, for the quick energy to help her recover, and she ate it all, then acted like nothing had ever happened.

I'm glad that Pete is calm and quick-thinking in emergencies - probably his time in the USAF, cop training, advanced first aid training, whatever...but he knew to do the right thing, and did it quickly, and his little Girlfriend is now fine :).

Girlfriend will keep her cage, we will make sure all those wire loops are TIGHT, and I hope we have many more years with her. Meanwhile I also got a lesson in cage maintenance - something about which I've become lax over the years...thanks, Lord, for waking me up :).